NEW HAVEN >> The victim was found on her knees taking a gasping breath every 20 seconds. She was holding a syringe.

She was moved immediately to Danbury Hospital where she was put in the Intensive Care Unit and placed on life support.

While she recovers, and the man who reportedly sold her the heroin, is one step closer to going behind bars.

Ryan Budd, 25, currently lives in Branford on a $100,000 bond. He pleaded guilty last week to heroin distribution charges stemming from this non-fatal overdose on March 1.

Budd is one of more than 20 individuals who have been arrested on federal complaints stemming from overdoses in the state this year. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has been taking a more active approach towards seeking out and arresting those connected with providing drugs that have resulted in overdoses.

The complaint in this case states that law enforcement used witness testimony, cell phone records, and surveillance video to name Budd as the culprit.

Budd is scheduled to appear again in federal court at the end of September for sentencing.

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